Horizontal spinning ring and traveler



United States Patent 3,300,963 HORIZGNTAL SPINNING RING AND TRAVELER Andrew J. Wayson, Needham, Mass, assignor to Merriman, Inc., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Mar. 11, 1964, Ser. No. 351,1ll3 2 Claims. ((Zl. 57-420) This invention relates to the textile industry and is particularly concerned with a new and novel type of horizontal spinning ring and traveler for use therewith. It will be understood that the spinning ring, which is novel in itself, could utilize other types of travelers than that disclosed herein, but the results would perhaps be less desirable. The novel traveler disclosed and claimed herein finds its most effective use with the novel horizontal spinning ring of this application. The term spinning ring? includes a ring used for twisting.

More specifically, an object of the present invention is to provide a horizontal type ring of such cross-sectional configuration that it may be used successfully with -a novel type traveler which will have long wearing characteristics whether the ring be .of the porous sintered powdered metal type or the solid steel type.

Stroboscopic studies of conventional horizontal spinning rings and travelers in operation as well as examination of areas of wear show plainly that the traveler is in contact with the ring during full speed operation at the under inner side .of the horizontal flange. In other words, even though the yarn that passes under the traveler on its way to the bobbin is pulling the traveler inwardly toward the axis of the spindle, nevertheless the centrifugal force generated in the traveler through its high speed rotation on the ring is sufficient to overcome the inward pull of the yarn so that only the inside end of the traveler engages the ring. That part of the traveler that surrounds the outer flange of the horizontal ring often makes no contact with the ring at all; or, if contact is made, it is so light that wear is insignificant.

The present construction contemplates that the traveler preferably be made of steel, which has good wearing qualities with respect to the yarn sliding thereunder, and that the traveler ends be covered with a synthetic substance, such as but not limited to nylon, Acetal or Delrin. The traveler could of course be made of any other selected material so long as the ends, and particularly the inner end, are formed to present an enlarged portion of synthetic substance for sliding contact with the ring. These synthetics are all known to have improved wearing qualities over steel when in sliding engagement with a spinning ring. Since the synthetic material is placed on those parts of the traveler that normally engage the ring, the result is a traveler with. a longer life than those of conventional form.

' It is recognized thatit is old to have travelers made of two materialsfor the purpose of producing longer traveler life; but; as far .as is. known, no horizontal ring has been constructed in such manner that the contact area with the traveler gradually'shifts downwardly as the traveler speed increases, nor has a traveler been made of standard configuration with the end or ends covered with a substantial ball or coating of low friction synthetic. The downward shift effect is achieved by providing an inwardly curving surface running from the inner vertical side of the supporting web to the under horizontal annular surface of the interior of the horizontal flange portion of the ring. This produces a result not obtainable by presentconstructions in that, if the forces acting on the traveler change to cause the traveler to move to a position of greater radius, the inner synthetic covered end of the traveler engaging the ring will, in moving outwardly, be forced downwardly along the curved surface toward an area which becomes progressively more vertical. Thus, as the traveler moves radially outward, not only is the resistance to outward movement increased but also the steel interior surface of the traveler adjacent the inner edge of the horizontal ring is prevented from coming into contact with the ring. If the forces change so that the traveler is pulled more toward the spindle, the intermediate portion of the traveler will continue to be held away from the ring. Should the traveler be moved so far inwardly that the outer end of the traveler comes into contact with the web or with the under side of the outer flange of the ring, then again it will be the synthetic material on the outer end of the traveler that will engage the ring rather than the steel portion of the traveler.

The invention will become more clearly understood as the description proceeds with the aid of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a greatly enlarged cross-section of a horizontal ring constructed according to the present invention showing thereon a traveler of novel construction;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary portion of FIG. 1 showing the position of the end of the traveler with respect to the ring under spinning conditions in which the traveler has been compelled to move outwardly; and

FIG. 3 is another fragmentary portion of FIG. 1 showing the relation of traveler to ring that might prevail, should the traveler be compelled to move inwardly with respect to the ring.

Referring now to the drawings, a horizontal spinning ring, greatly enlarged, is shown in vertical section. Included also in this section is an oil reservoir that could supply oil to the ring if the ring were made of powdered metal, but it is to be understood that the novel construction about to be described is applicable to both the powdered metal type of ring and the solid steel ring. Because .of the difficulties present in maintaining adequate lubrication of the solid steel ring, traveler life is greater when the traveler is used with self-lubricating powdered metal types of rings.

The ring disclosed herein is of the powdered metal type and comprises a circular base 2 designed to be attached to the ring rail in conventional manner. Extending upwardly is a circular web 4 on the top of which is the horizontal ring 6. On one side of the base 2 is an oil reservoir 8 of conventional construction containing felts 10 and wick 12. A wick 13 extending about the ring transmits oil to means in the form of other vertically extending wicks 14 which lead the .oil quickly to all parts of the ring. The

wick means just described for inducing the oil to move quickly to all parts of the porous ring is not claimed in this application, and accordingly no further explanation of this feature will be given.

In order to have a better appreciation of the size of the ring with which this invention is concerned, it might be stated that in a typical horizontal ring the horizontal dimension of ring 6 from point A to point B might be in the order of /8 inch; the vertical dimension from point C to point D might be .057 inch; and the diameter of the complete ring, 2 /2 inches. These dimensions are not to be considered in any way limiting, as rings and travelersmay be made embodying the invention up to any required size.

With these figures in mind, it can be understood that the steel traveler 16 is a wire of very small diameter. The ends of the traveler are covered with balls of synthetic material 18 and 19, such as nylon, Acetal or Delrin, for example, which have a low coefficient of friction with spinning rings of powdered metal or steel. It will be understood that other synthetic materials having similar suitable properties might also be used. The synthetic coverings l8 and 19 are of such size as to be able to prevent the adjacent traveler portions from engaging the under sides of the ring.

Now continuing with the description of the ring, it will be noted that in vertical section the exterior of the ring as at 20 has substantially the same curvature as the interior at 22. The under side of the exterior as at 24 runs horizontally inwardly until it meets the vertical side of the circular web 4 at the corner 26. The interior configuration, however, is entirely different. The under side of the interior of the ring as at 28 has only a limited horizontal portion and shortly begins to turn downwardly to form a continuously downwardly curving surface 30 which joins the inner vertical surface of web 4 at about the position 32 so that there is a continuous smoothly curving surface from the under side 28 to the web 4. This curved surface 30 is the principal feature of the invention as to the ring, and the result achieved thereby will now be explained.

The yarn being spun comes down from the pigtail above the spindle as indicated at 34 and is passed under traveler 16 to move laterally as at 36 on its way to the bobbin. When the traveler is up to speed, the centrifugal forces are such that the traveler will assume approximately the position shown in FIG. 1 in which only the end 19 will be in contact with the ring. The rest of the traveler 16, including the outer end 18, does not touch the ring at any place, and accordingly all of the wear is concentrated on the ball 19 and the particular portion of the curved surface 30 with which the ball 19 is then engaged.

Should the forces acting on the traveler change so that the traveler tends to move outwardly to a position of greater radius, such action is permitted; but the extent of the movement is limited. This condition is shown in FIG. 2, in which the ball 19 on the end of traveler 16 has been forced outwardly; but, because of the curvature of surface 30, has at the same time been forced somewhat downwardly to a position where the more nearly vertical surface balances the increased outward force. At this position, outward movement of the traveler ceases and, it will be noted, all point of the traveler are still clear of engagement with the ring except ball 19. The position of wear on ball 19 likewise has shifted somewhat along with the lowered area of wear on the ring. This helps to extend the life of the traveler and the ring. It should be remembered, however, that travelers wear out far faster than rings. Hence the principal object of the synthetic material 18 and 19 on the ends of the traveler is to increase the life of the traveler without in any way reducing its effectivenes or increasing ring wear.

In FIG. 3 is shown the situation that develops when the forces change so that the traveler moves in a path of reduced radius. Here the traveler 16 has moved to the right, and in so doing the ball 19 has climbed the circular curved surface 30 to reach the horizontal under side 28. On reaching this position, the ball 18 has come into engagement with the vertical exterior of web 4, thus limiting further inward movement of the traveler and placing the traveler in engagement with the ring at two points. The forces of yarn 34 acting on traveler 16 might have a more downward component, in which case the ball 19 might be separated from the under side 28 to leave the only point of engagement between the traveler and ring at ball 18. In such case, the traveler would still be clear of the body of the ring. Again there might be situations in which the interior of the traveler would come into con- 4. tact with the upper portion of the ring, but such contact would be incidental and of negligible frictional significance.

From the foregoing explanation, it will be appreciated that the curved interior surface 30 of the ring does not preclude use therewith of travelers which do not have material on the ends thereof of low coefficient of friction. Similarly, the traveler disclosed herein having on its ends balls or coverings of synthetic material which have a low coefficient of friction in relation to steel or powdered metal rings could be used with effectiveness on a horizontal ring of conventional construction; that is, a construction which did not include the novel feature of the interior curved surface such as 30.

It is intended to cover all changes and modifications of the examples of the invention herein chosen for purposes of the disclosure which do not constitute departures from the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. In combination, a horizontal type spinning ring, a circular web supporting said ring having a circular interior wall and a circular exterior wall, said ring having an interior circular under side, a circular surface extending outwardly and downwardly from said under side to said interior wall, said ring having an outer under side which meets with the upper portion of the circular exterior wall of said web, a traveler on said horizontal ring, said traveler having a covering of synthetic material on its inner end, the configuration of said traveler being such that when said synthetic covered inner end is in engagement with said circular surface and the rest of said traveler is in normal operating attitude no other part of said traveler will touch said ring.

2. In combination, a horizontal type spinning ring, a circular web supporting said ring and having a circular exterior wall and a circular interior wall, said ring having an outer under side that meets said exterior wall, said ring having an interior under side and a downwardly and outwardly extending curved surface running from said interior under side to said interior wall, a traveler mounted on said ring, the inner end of said traveler covered with a synthetic material, the spacing between the ends of said traveler being such that when said inner end is in engagement with said curved surface the outer end will be clear of said exterior wall and when said outer end is in engagement with said exterior wall the inner end will be at a radial position substantially coextensive with said interior under side of said ring, the vertical dimension of said traveler being such that when said inner end is in engagement with said curved surface and said traveler is in normal operating attitude no other part of said traveler will touch said ring.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 588,817 8/1897 Draper 571 19 1,604,929 10/1926 Merrill 57-l 19 2,749,698 6/1956 Stahli 57l25 3,084,501 4/1963 Klutz 57119 X 3,134,219 5/1964 Carter et al. 57l25 FRANK J. COHEN, Primary Examiner.

J. PETRAKES, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN COMBINATION, A HORIZONTAL TYPE SPINNING RING, A CIRCULAR WEB SUPPORTING SAID RING HAVING A CIRCULAR INTERIOR WALL AND A CIRCULAR EXTERIOR WALL, SAID RING HAVING AN INTERIOR CIRCULAR UNDER SIDE, A CIRCULAR SURFACE EXTENDING OUTWARDLY AND DOWNWARDLY FROM SAID UNDER SIDE TO SAID INTERIOR WALL, SAID RING HAVING AN OUTER UNDER SIDE WHICH MEETS WITH THE UPPER PORTION OF THE CIRCULAR EXTERIOR WALL OF SAID WEB, A TRAVELER ON SAID HORIZONTAL RING, SAID TRAVELER HAVING A COVERING OF SYNTHETIC MATERIAL ON ITS INNER END, THE CONFIGURATION OF SAID TRAVELER BEING SUCH THAT WHEN SAID SYNTHETIC COVERED INNER END IS IN ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID CIRCULAR SURFACE AND THE REST OF SAID TRAVELER IS IN NORMAL OPERATING ATTITUDE NO OTHER PART OF SAID TRAVELER WILL TOUCH SAID RING. 